Grand Valley State University will be testing its emergency system at noon on March 4. The test will include GVSUAlert! emergency messaging, emergency website updating, and the Allendale outdoor emergency notification system.

There is no action required from anyone receiving the alert and university operations will continue as normal. Severe weather will postpone the test until the following day. The department of public safety will send out a message through GVSUAlert! to all students, faculty and staff. A test message will also be heard on the university’s outdoor warning system on the Allendale Campus.

GVSUAlert! emergency notifications are delivered through a combination of text, email and voice messaging, depending on what information was provided by the user for the GVSUAlert! opt-in program. The system is designed to quickly notify the campus community of important information during emergency incidents. Users may receive alerts for incidents such as gas leaks, winter weather closures, armed suspects on campus, power outages or any other incidents that require emergency notification.

Reminders of the annual testing will be posted on the GVSU Police Department’s Twitter, Facebook and on GVNow.

“We want members of the community to be aware of the test, especially since many students will be away from campus for spring break,” said GVPD Capt. Brandon DeHaan. “Students, faculty and staff will be getting alerts, but this is simply a test to make sure emergency alerts are operational.”

Users can update contact information on GVSUAlert! at any time. For more information, visit www.gvsu.edu/gvsualert. Questions may be referred to Sgt. William O’Donnell in the emergency managements office at (616) 331-7526 or [email protected].